3G: the Glowing Green Goo

Bathor could only watch, powerlessly, as her colleague unwittingly sabotaged the mission even more.

“Our situation must evolve too fast to be updated live.” The multicoloured woman defended.

Are you crazy?

When the asymmetrical woman had received the dotter’s report, part of her had been disappointed he did take less than a day, while the rest was shocked, and finally ecstatic at the news. He had a name! Finally, a lead!

A solid one too, with solid and easily provable premises, timetables, and everything they needed to be sure of the result. It ended with a name, a picture and two professional addresses, digital and physical. The face was strangely familiar, but after all the dotters she had been forced to address, it wasn’t surprising. With barely visible mutations, they were all so alike in appearance.

It had shaken things up in the team. No one expected a result anymore, sending her in the dot was literally the last resort. Her many back-and-forths merely annoyed everyone; they couldn’t claim there was nothing left to try yet. They were all ready to call the mission a failure, take the punishment, and move on.

It had taken them most of a day to collectively check the report’s useability and decide how to proceed. First obvious step: bring the target, this ‘Zax’ guy, to their office in the Circle. The others would hammer the rest down while a small team left to convince their target.

Bathor would’ve come alone, but now there was something to gain from stepping in the dot, so they all wanted a piece. They wouldn’t admit it, but her recent visits made the idea less appalling too. If she could manage, so could they. Nevermind their main argument to send her alone: “Only you can do it. You’re the most suited for the task.”.

Hypocrites.

They eventually settled on sending Loozy, the rainbow-haired Kogito, with the actual negotiator as support. Allegedly, because the goal was not to negotiate, but to convince the nobody to be smart and come along nicely.

Pathetic excuse, but she had been outvoted.

Her experience and bracelet did prove useful, leading them to the place without issue. A few steps after the border, for no apparent reason, unease settled in her stomach, growing with each step. The passers-by didn’t cast more than a glance their way, which matched her previous visits. She looked around. The streets felt familiar, but most looked alike anyways.

They arrived at the non-descript door and her unease was at its strongest. She was so distraught; she didn’t notice her colleague stepping past her to assume her leading position.

Only when the door opened and she glanced inside the shop, and their target, did she recognise him. It was the commission guy! She hadn’t paid attention to the picture – who used those anyways? A single mutation could make it useless – and she hadn’t bothered to pay attention to his name. Did she even know it before? In any case, there was no mistake; he was the one she had commissioned, who had given them their target… himself?

What? Why did- No, no time to dwell on that!

She barely managed to grab Loozy’s shoulder in time. She tried to warn her, but the taller girl didn’t let her finish. She couldn’t even blame her; convincing a dotter to go in the Circle, even in passing, should be a no brainer.

No, she could only blame herself and watch as her colleague teased and subtly insulted the dotter they needed, who wasn’t shy about fighting back.

Here it comes.

The single horned woman braced herself for the incoming disaster.

“Let’s see…” The dotter… Zax, took his time. “The legal codex orders the Circle’s governing body to update the dot weekly, with three official reminders one week apart before the dot is allowed to cut off their supply of 3G… there are systems, programs and schedules, in place to update everything bit by bit, if people do their job properly… the average update frequency is monthly, give or take every four weeks… yes, moving too fast, that’s the most plausible explanation.” He eventually nodded.

Uh? Uh?!

He had accepted it!? He had just taken the blow and not fought back? Somehow, it didn’t feel like a victory…

She might have missed something, because Loozy’s assured smile morphed to a passable customer service one. She immediately switched topic too:

“Bumper Mediator Services is a company gathering representatives from the Five Great Families, in teams of equal representation. We coordinate joint projects involving two Families or more.”

“Nice. I didn’t know such a company existed. Who do you answer to?” He even seemed genuinely interested.

“As I already said, in my team I represent the Kogito.”

“I mean, your company as a whole.” The dotter amended, without losing his casual tone. “‘Mediators’ can’t depend on a side of what they mediate for, but independent organisations are basically forbidden in the Circles. And if the Families could cooperate enough to share a large company equally, they wouldn’t need one for mediation. Let alone one big enough to have at least four branches. So…?”

“We are less mediators than coordinators nowadays. The name just stayed from the group’s foundation, when it was still small and independent. Which is allowed by the way, there’s nothing illegal about it.” Loozy frowned at the end, but she quickly hid it.

“Sure, right until they start actually working or gaining momentum. Then it’s either being bought, or being forced to close or disband for a variety of reasons. I said “basically forbidden” because it’s not explicitly illegal, but de facto, everything is done to ensure it does not happen. Or doesn’t last long, at least.”

His matter-of-fact tone was more chilling than any indignation he could have displayed. Bathor was close to relieved that she wasn’t expected to carry this discussion.

“Now you’re going too far.” The Kogito slightly frowned, but didn’t lose her professional tone.

Her teammate was impressed, actually. Patience wasn’t exactly her strong point.

“Am I?” He blinked. “Can you think of a single organisation, who isn’t a sub-branch or a subsidiary of a Family company, who actually does something? But fine,” he sighed and shook his head. “I can see it’s a sensitive topic. Let’s forget about it. Just answer the question please. Who does Bumper Mediator Services answer to?” He reminded.

“… Each representative has their own line of command, made of members of their Family belonging to the company, but I won’t bore you with the details.” Loozy responded after only a brief hesitation.

Nice move.

Giving the information while softly closing the topic. Did she read about rhetoric recently?

“Five chains of command per team? That’s… a delicate balance, hm...” He took a thoughtful expression. “Can’t be easy to move up. Or in any direction, really. Nevermind. So! What brings employees of such an important company in my humble shop.”

Bathor was so glad they went back on topic she didn’t even care he immediately spotted the main hurdle of working for this company that advertised itself as “a place where every voice counts”.

Ha!

“We have reasons to believe you will be useful to us. Come with us in the First Circle.”

“No.” immediately came the flattest answer ever answered.

“What? What do you mean, no?” Loozy was plumoxed. It was amusing when it happened to someone else.

“Just that. No. No ambiguity. I won’t go in the First Circle with you.”

“… Why!?”

Her shock was entertaining, but she couldn’t be blamed. It was impossible to expect such a reaction; most dotters would blindly jump on any occasion to get closer to the Circle. Even Bathor, who was sure he would be difficult, didn’t expect such a brutal and instant refusal.

“Because in a single sentence, you’ve been suspicious, unsavoury, and you overstepped your boundaries.” Contrasting to the Resident, Zax kept his conversational tone.

“… How?” The dark-skinned woman was calming down, but the lack of verbosity showed to those who knew her, she hadn’t fully recovered yet.

He frowned and leaned his head on the side, as if pondering how serious she was, but answered nonetheless:

““We have reasons to believe”. He raised a finger. “That’s the vaguest phrasing I can imagine. After you gave so much information about your employer, it doesn’t feel natural or accidental. It was intentional. Which makes me think however you found me, underhanded means were used, if not illegal ones. Suspicious. Which doesn’t bode well for whatever you want from me.”

Bathor joined Loozy in confusion, albeit for different reasons. How could he not know how they found him? Did he forget her face too? For some reason, the idea made her feel better. And gave her a glimmer of hope of salvaging the situation.

He wasn’t done yet.

“Which also makes me doubt what you said about you or your employer. I already confirmed this company exists, so that’s that. But even if you are actually employed there, I cannot be sure it relates to your task. Still suspicious. Secondly, “you will be useful to us”.” He raised a second finger.

Wait, how did he confirm? He hadn’t touched his bracelet.

“Makes it clear you want to use me, as a tool, not for me to join you as partner or ally. If I follow, I’ll be used, then thrown away. Back to my starting point, in the most optimistic scenario. Unsavoury. Not exactly a reason to refuse, but definitely a reason to not blindly follow. Third,” A new finger joined the others. ““Come with us”. Clearly a command, although I never agreed to work for you. Or with you. Overstep. Doesn’t bode well for what it means to be under your orders, either.”

It might have been her imagination, but Bathor nearly heard a “know your place” towards the end.

A heavy silence followed the longwinded rant, but the off-putting dotter didn’t let it set for long:

“Now, if you’re not going to address those points or buy anything, please leave. You’re not customers and you’re holding the line.” He stated, grabbing a package from under the counter and putting it on the side.

The Residents turned around and were spooked when, indeed, another dotter was behind them, waiting for who knew how long.

“Oh, don’t mind me.” The older, green-splotched woman waved her hand. “I’m not in a rush, and that was impressive. Did you really get all that from just a few words?”

“That, and my personal experiences about Residents and how the First Circle does things.” The handyman nodded with a personable smile. “Regardless, here you go.” He pushed the package toward her. “Your reviews state what satisfies you the most is our timely service, and I wouldn’t want that to change.”

Experiences?

Bathor frowned, watching the exchange.

He had to know Residents from the Core incident, not to mention herself, but experience with the Circle’s management? The horned woman felt something worth digging into.

Loozy had other preoccupations though. She didn’t appreciate a random nobody stepping around her with a “excuse me” like it was nothing, taking her package, and leaving with a “Thank you, good bye”. Her patience was running low and the mission wasn’t anywhere close to being accomplished.

On the other hand, it did give her enough time to peel his words back.

“So your main issues are that I was not explicit and… polite enough for your tastes?” She confirmed first.

“It’s not a matter of taste, and courtesy is less an issue than respect, but that’s the idea, more or less.”

“A certain speech, recorded during an incident in the Core, spread like wildfire in the Circle. It’s a sensitive topic, so I can’t say more about it, but my Family’s experts projected serious trouble in the future because of it. We put several commissions in the dot to find out where those troublesome words came from, and they pointed towards you. We don’t know if you were aware of being recorded during that incident, but we would appreciate it, if you could come to the Circle, and help us put an end to the problems your elocution caused. Please, come with us. You’ll be well compensated for your time and effort.”

Her factual explanation was neutral, but some words at the end felt forced, as if saying them aloud was more painful than tearing her own nails out with her teeth. From the mix of pity and disgust on the dotter’s face, he didn’t miss it either.

“Are your concerns assuaged?”

“They are, but others have risen. The details of the Core incident are public knowledge, but fully anonymous. Especially for civilian units. You shouldn’t have been able to trace it back to anyone in particular. You didn’t even ask to check if it was me. You’re already sure of it.”

“We know it.” Loozy smirked, vindicated at not being on the defensive anymore.

Bathor was on the verge of giving her questions up.

“Which mean I now have a solid hint of illegal activities. Now, I am not accusing you of anything, but could I please see those commissions that led you to me, and your information on the related dotters?”

“Of course. We didn’t do anything illegal.” Loozy played along, motioning to a confused Bathor. “According to my colleague, the guy was an asshole anyway. She’ll be glad to bring him trouble.”

“Will she, now?” He raised an eyebrow and a knowing smirk toward her.

They had printed the report in the Circle, and brought a copy, but the horned woman forwarded it from her bracelet instead. She had noticed his weird reaction to paper exchanges, so it would hopefully make her more relatable. She also widened her eyes and vehemently shook her head at the question, drawing a silent frown from the multi-coloured woman.

Zax opened the report on his holo-screen and pointed to a long number in the header:

“Look. See that commission ID number? It is a necessary feature to identify anonymous commissions without revealing the commissioner’s identity. And this one match an anonymous commission I did recently.”

“What?” She was angry now. “Is that a joke? You wrote that? You claimed it was you? And now, you’re telling me you were never allowed to accept that order in the first place? You just wasted our time!? For a PRANK!?”

“Not at all. I am, indeed, the one who spoke those words. I just needed proof that you were the anonymous commissioner.”

“Wasn’t it obvious from the start?” Her hand flew to the bovine woman behind her side.

“It was obvious the second I saw Bathor.” He glanced at the flabbergasted woman. “But I only had circumstantial proof at best. Now I have undeniable evidence, and we can freely discuss that commission without me risking a lawsuit. Well, almost. Apprentice?” He turned his head to something behind the counter. “We’re going to discuss a topic covered by an NDA. Please go in the backroom, there isn’t enough place for three in there. You can rest, or play a game, or whatever. Do as you wish. Just don’t break anything.”

“Can I leave?” Came a low feminine voice.

“Nice try, but the workday isn’t over yet. Just enjoy your extended break.” He smirked at the hidden girl.

The Residents heard shuffling and moving, but the mysterious apprentice stayed out of sight. They exchanged a look. They had no idea someone else was there from the beginning.

“She’s shy.” Zax smiled at them. “So, where were we? Ah, yes. Freely discussing. If that report sent you here, it means you used it and relied on it. Correct?”

“Correct.”

“When you arrived, you didn’t ask if I was actually the one you were looking for. That means you fully trusted that report, correct?”

“I don’t know it I would go that far, but we had no reason to doubt it.”

“That means it’s a trustworthy report, with sufficient and accurate information, that helped you advance your project. Correct?”

“Correct?” Loozy and Bathor didn’t understand where he was going.

“And yet, I had an awful review on that commission. Literally the worst possible,” he displayed it on his holo-screen. “With matching compensation. So, if I did such an awful job, you shouldn’t be here. If you’re here, I did a great job I was underpaid for.”

The new silence was more awkward than heavy, and didn’t feel any better. Both Residents remembered that review and the associated payment. How could they not? It had been one of the few points they had all readily agreed on; to give a lesson to that dotter who had dared to make things difficult for them.

Who knew it would turn against them?

“Also, just in case you were not aware, all this conversation was and is being recorded from the start, and can be used in a trial. So? What do you think?”

The Residents struggled to find something to say to salvage this disastrous twist, even knowing it was a lost cause. Zax watched, grinning, his gleaming eyes drowning their meagre hope in a sea of darkness.